Dog beach idea meets mixed bag of opinions in Jacksonville Beach

Lee County's dog beach has been "super popular" and almost problem free, a county parks official says.

A proposal to designate an oceanfront stretch of sand at Jacksonville Beach as a “dog beach” — where human-accompanied canines could play off leash — draws mixed reviews at City Hall.

Mayor Charlie Latham said he gets enough complaints about dogs running free in the community as it is. He said he sees no need to change the current beach access law, which only allows dogs on the beach in the early morning and evening hours and requires they be leashed.

But two council members said they want more information about the dog beach concept.

In an online petition addressed to Latham, resident Charlas Dehling wrote that a designated off-leash beach area could attract more people and revenue to the city.

“Dog lovers consider their canines part of the family and seek out destinations where dogs and people can jointly participate in recreation,” she wrote.

Proceeds from charging a nominal fee could offset expenses, such as providing dog waste disposal bags, waste collection and patrol, she wrote.

Also, Dehling pledged to organize a group of volunteers to monitor the park daily.

“Dog owners appreciate and self-enforce any potential violations of dog beach use,” she wrote. “Having taken my dogs to off-leash dog beaches in Florida and New Jersey, I … observed no evidence of abuse or negligence to the environment, dogs or people.”

As of Wednesday, the petition had 70 supporters from across the country.

The petition is the second circulated to bring changes to Jacksonville Beach. Another petition urges the city to implement a second of beach for nude sunbathing.

Currently, Jacksonville Beach and Neptune Beach allow leashed dogs on the beach before 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m. Atlantic Beach allows dogs on the beach during the day and evening, but also requires they be leashed. Also, there are several dog parks in the Beaches area.

Except for their timing, “All three beaches … have the same basic law,” Latham said. “Dogs are allowed … but they must be on a leash. This law has worked well for our city, and I don’t anticipate any changes in the near future.

“We’re taking complaints regularly from people who have incidents involving dogs not on a leash,” he said.

Councilman Tom Taylor said he had safety concerns, particularly about “pit bulls and other big dogs.”

“A lot of children on the beach are scared of animals and a lot of our senior citizens walk their dogs and I would not want to see a dog off its leash hurt a child or senior citizen [who] is walking,” he said. “But I am open to discussion.”

Councilman Phillip M. Vogelsang said he asked Dehling for more information about the dog beaches she had visited.

“I think it’s worth discussing,” he said. “If such a beach area exists I’d like to see how it operates. It seems like the idea is to make a portion of the beach a dog park, and I’ve never seen or heard of that being done.”

Actually many communities across the country and in Florida have done just that, including Lee and Pinellas counties.

About 24 acres are designated as Lee County’s Bonita Beach Dog Park, also known as Dog Beach, with about 10 acres of usable land, said Dana Kasler, deputy director of the county’s Parks and Recreation Department.

“It is super popular,” he said. “It has been received very well.”

The area is open during daylight hours, admission is free and a volunteer group, Friends of Dog Beach, helps with maintenance and monitoring. Dogs must be licensed and the people chaperoning them at least age 15. Those handlers are required to control and clean up after the dogs, and prevent them from harassing wildlife or shorebirds. Not allowed are children under age 5, aggressive or sick dogs or more than two dogs per handler.

Established as a community-driven project in 2001, the dog beach has been almost problem free, said Kasler.

“It has really gone well. I don’t know of any major incidents,” he said. “For 13 years, that [record] is pretty amazing.”

In Pinellas County, Fort De Soto Park in Tierra Verde allows dogs on the beach in a designated area called Paws Playground. The park has a $5 admission fee, but annual passes are available. The dog beach rules are similar to those in Lee County, although handlers must be at least age 16 and can bring three dogs.

The dog park was established in 2004 because of demand from dog owners and complaints about dogs on the beach from birders, said park superintendent Jim Wilson. The county consulted all sides on the site, an under-used area of beach that never had shorebirds nesting, he said.

“That helps. We got buy-in from the people who would have been the naysayers,” he said. “We have 7 miles of beach. … We took the least used section and turned it into the most used section.”